Step 1. Management commitment

It’s essential to gain support for your workplace wellness program from all levels of management.

With management leading by example, the program has a greater chance of success. This means you need more than management’s endorsement—it’s about their active and visible participation.

Make a case for your program

The best way to get management support is with a simple, clear proposal. Use statistics and facts to highlight the benefits for employees, employers and your workplace. Build your case with examples of successful workplaces.

Demonstrate how a workplace wellness program can:

improve productivity

reduce sick leave, workplace injuries and compensation costs

improve employee relations

enhance corporate image

improve morale and motivation.

Look at your workplace. Get an idea of what’s already on offer—such as healthy food and drink options, shower facilities and lockers. Consider what else you can do.

To demonstrate how your program will work, include in your proposal:

benefits of a wellness program

activities and facilities you already have that promote health and wellbeing

Create a shared vision

Formalise management’s commitment to the wellness program by developing a workplace wellness statement or policy.

This document outlines the value your organisation places on employee health and wellbeing. It captures the vision for improving health and includes input from both management and employees.

A workplace wellness statement/policy includes:

a statement of your workplace’s commitment to workplace wellness

program goals and objectives

responsibilities of key groups or individuals

links to other documents such as health and safety policies

the policy review date

senior management endorsement.

Your statement/policy can help to build a wellness culture, where addressing wellness develops into business as usual and ‘how we do things here’. When management and employees are engaged and motivated about workplace wellness it’s more likely new staff will feel the same.

To start creating a wellness culture, provide a copy of your statement/policy to all your employees and display it in the workplace. Include this in your employee induction and workplace health and safety program. Make sure it’s effective by monitoring how people are responding.

Step 1. Checklist

Does senior management support the workplace wellness program?

Have you developed a workplace wellness statement or policy, displayed it in the workplace and provided a copy to your employees?